5 "Truth Bombs" About The Celtics

So I was approached by the bigwigs here at The Sports Hub (well, that might not be totally true, I was drunk at the time and it might have been the janitor) and asked to write a blog about all things Celtics for the brand spanking new 98.5 The Sports Hub website. This originally gave me pause, because…
1) I don’t work for the Sports Hub, I work for WZLX.
2) They honestly can’t find somebody more qualified?

I mean, I’m probably the biggest Celtics fan in the building (I already blog about them obsessively over at my personal site coltmonday.com… wink wink, click click!), and everybody’s sick of hearing me try to start up conversations about the new C’s warmup jacket I got for Christmas, or Doc’s inexplicably stupid refusal to play Bill Walker significant minutes, or what Big Baby’s new nickname should be; but that doesn’t mean I’m qualified to… wait a minute.

For starters, here are 5 things, opinions or nuggets of truth (Let’s call them “Truth Bombs” in dual honor of Paul Pierce and 30 Rock’s Tracy Jordan, shall we?) I think every Celtics fan should keep in mind. These aren’t based on stats, or insider information. I’m not Tang-Tang (my pet name for a certain midday host), I’m just a fan, but these next 5 points just reek of Colbert-level truthiness: They’re right from the gut. Remember: We’ve already established it’s just a stupid blog. So here’s 5 truth bombs on the current state of the C’s:

1. If Rondo hadn’t made the All-Star team, Tommy Heinsohn would still be red-faced and screaming in anguish. And rightly so! It’s bad enough that ALLEN FREAKIN’ IVERSON is starting thanks to the fan vote, but Rondo’s been the best PG in the Eastern Conference all year, and it’s not even close. I’d argue he’s been one of the top 5 guards in the whole league all season, so Mo Williams can squawk all he wants, but Rondo should be starting this game and he needed to get in.

2. Big Baby’s new nickname should be “Big Effin’ Trade Bait”. My buddy Evan came up with this, and I wholeheartedly agree. While it might come back to bite them in the ass, I think he’s gone at the deadline. Wyc doesn’t like him, and if there’s one thing I know, it’s that if the majority owner (especially a guy like Wyc) of a team doesn’t like something, it gets dealt (with). Think about it: First, you had the injury and suspension stemming from the fight with his buddy right before the season kicked off. Then, he cursed at a fan in Detroit and got fined. Now, all he can talk (and tweet) about is adopting a new nickname and eschewing the Big Baby moniker, when all his energy should be focused on GETTING BETTER AT BASKETBALL. I think all this nonsense shows Wyc’s wish for Davis to grow up fast is going to go unfulfilled.

He’s still young and shows flashes of promise, but his stock is dropping quickly among those of use who watch him consistently, and there are a few GMs out there who still remember what he did in the playoffs last year and will be willing to take a chance. I think Wyc’s given out him all the chances he’s gonna give him. I like him, but I doubt he’s here much longer.

3.The C’s should be busy at the trade deadline, with the priority being getting a young wing with some hops. Ray Allen isn’t getting any younger or quicker, and Paul Pierce could use a breather here and there, so they need somebody who’s going to give them something off the bench this year and or (ideally) succeed them in the starting lineup eventually, perhaps as soon as right now. I loved the idea of Monta Ellis for Ray Allen, but the Warriors aren’t going to do that. They’re too far out of it for that trade to make sense, and it couldn’t work straight-up salary-wise anyways. Ray would have to be dealt to a team that’s a fringe playoff squad who needs that one piece to become a legit contender, and has a big enough contract to trade for him. While I’d love if the C’s could get their hands on the Bobcats’ Gerald Wallace, or somehow figured out a way to pry Rudy Gay away from the Grizzlies, I think they have a much more reasonable shot of making a move on a really young buck like Martell Webster from Portland to compliment Ray this year and grooming him to take over for him down the line.

Oh, and I can hear the diehards now: “… but they already have Tony Allen!”

Which leads us to Truth Bomb #4, and I want you to read this next bit twice, just to make sure it sinks in:

4. Tony Allen is TERRIBLE.

No, I mean it. Go back and do it again, like you promised.

He can’t shoot. He scares the bejezzus out of me every time he has the ball in his hands. It’s a turnover waiting to happen. I love that some people argue that he’s still learning the game. TONY ALLEN IS 28 YEARS OLD. By the time I was 28, I knew what I was doing when it came to my job, or at least how to fake it. If Allen is still learning, he should be taking the short-bus to and from the games. They say a NBA player reaches his prime in his late twenties. That means we’re seeing TONY ALLEN IN HIS PRIME. He’s not getting any better. Doc’s faith in him and the fact he keeps giving him minutes is mind-boggling to me. He shouldn’t be the first guard off the bench; hell, he shouldn’t even be the 4th. I like Giddens more than TA, and Giddens is currently with the Red Claws.

5. Right now, I don’t care if the C’s win or not; staying healthy is the most important thing. Let me say this: I don’t think KG should be playing until March. I feel like they rushed him back, just like they did last year. Remember how that turned out? He ended up playing a few games and made the injury worse, forcing him to miss the rest of the season. Why play him at all right now?

We all know the Celtics are going to make the playoffs and be one of the top 4 seeds in the East. We know that they’ve got the best road record in the NBA, and (on top of that) are a veteran team who can go in and take a game from anybody- in any series, even the Finals. While it would be nice to have home-court throughout, it won’t matter if KG, Ray and Pierce are out of gas or injured. The more guys their age play, the worse they get. (I can attest, you see should see this one middle-aged fat accountant who plays at my Y…)

Point is, we need them all to be healthy and rested for the playoffs, so why waste their best basketball now? Doc played Ray 41 minutes in their last game against the Magic. That’s INSANE. He should be playing 30 minutes a game, tops; no matter who they’re playing at this point in the season. Who cares if they lose to the Lakers in February, if it means they can play them again in June?

There’s a lot of basketball left to be played before they even sniff the playoffs, and a lot of things worse than dropping to the #3 seed could potentially happen. (*knocks on wood*) Plus, Doc could use the extra minutes sitting the Big 3 and the rest of the veterans (Take a seat, Scal!) to… oh, I don’t know… PLAY BILL WALKER, MAYBE?!?!

Tony Allen is the worst! He has talent but it is completely lost when he gets it in his head that he can be the fan favorite showboat. That is how you blew out your knee, smarten up or get him out of there.